a woman to help
by 59katie
Summary: walker learns that he is beth's father and takes her into his home when Alex is wounded


A Woman to help by Katie 59

Chapter One

Alex asked Walker " Are you really sure that you want to do this? I mean it's not going to be easy on you having me around all the time. What happens when you want to entertain a lady friend overnight? It's not like Beth and I can go somewhere else then." Walker answered her " Yes Alex I am sure that I want to do this. As for me entertaining a lady friend overnight, I haven't done that in years."  
" Why on earth not? I mean a man like you wouldn't go without, would he?" Alex questioned Walker who replied " Alex we have a deal. I stay out of your personal life and you stay out of mine. Remember you were the one who said that Beth was our only connection?" Alex nodded okay so Walker began to wheel her to the discharge desk where Dr. Williams lectured Alex on following the rehab schedule and tried again to get her to go to a nursing home. " Miss Cahill I wish you would reconsider going to Ranger Walker's ranch instead of going to a nursing home for your rehab. It would make it a lot easier for you to get medical help if something were to arise during your rehab." Walker did the answering by informing Dr. Williams " Doctor we've been through this. Alex is moving in at my ranch where she will undergo intenstive rehab assisted by the nurses that her father have hired. Should anything go wrong the nurse or I will make sure that Alex gets medical attention right away. Now can you sign the discharge papers so that I can take Alex home to see our daughter?" As Dr. Williams was signing the papers he said " Okay Ranger Walker all signed. Now you can take your fiancee home to your ranch." As Dr. Williams walked away Alex asked " What did Dr. Williams mean when he said that now you can take your fiancee home to your ranch?"  
" I told him that I was your fiancee. That was the only way that I could sign the papers allowing him to continue with your treatment." Walker explained to Alex who questioned him further " But what about my father? Why couldn't you have him come sign the papers?"  
" When I called your father to tell him about you he was in no condition to do anything about it. Now how about we get you to the ranch? Beth has missed you so much." Walker answered changing the subject. Alex who realized that her father had been drunk when Walker called him went along with the subject change by saying " I've missed her so much myself. The first thing that I'm going to do when I get to the ranch is give my baby a great big hug."  
When they arrived at the ranch Walker took Alex out of his truck and carried her into the living room where he placed her on the couch. Walker then got Alex's wheelchair and was attempting to pick Alex up to put her in it when Alex stated " You are not picking me up again Cordell Walker. I will get in that wheelchair when I need to and not a minute before then. Dr. Williams said that I was allowed to walk short distances as long as I used the wheelchair when my back was hurting. Now where is my daughter at?"  
Walker went to the steps where he called out " Beth can you come down here?" Beth flew down the steps and into her mother's arms. " Mommy you're home. I missed you so much. Did Daddy show you your bedroom? We fixed it all up for you." Alex hugged her daughter then said " How about you show it to me Beth? I'm sure that your father has things that he needs to do." Beth looked at her Father who said " Go ahead honey show Mommy her room."  
Beth led her mother into the downstairs bedroom where Alex tiredly sat on the bed as Beth told her " Mommy, Daddy and Uncle Jimmie fixed up the bathroom for you. They made the doorway wider and they put some bars on the wall and by the toilet and in the shower. Do you want to come see them?"  
" Not right now honey. Right now I want to see my baby. I missed you so much when I was in the hospital. Did your Daddy take good care of you?" Alex replied as she urged Beth to sit besides her on the bed. Beth answered as she sat down on the bed " Yes he did Mommy. I have my own horse now but Daddy says that I'm not allowed to ride Belle until I learn how to take care of her properly. Grandpa C.D. came out here a lot when Daddy and Uncle Jimmie had to work late. But Mommy I don't understand how Daddy can be my Daddy if the two of you aren't getting married. Aren't you supposed to get married when you have children?"  
" Yes that's the way that is usually works but your father and I are not going to be getting married. As a matter of fact just as soon as I get back on my feet we'll be getting our own place again. Daddy will be staying here. How does that sound to you?" Alex told her daughter who objected " I don't want to leave my Daddy. Why can't we stay here with him?"  
" Because we can't. Once I'm better we will be moving out young lady." Alex replied causing Beth to pout " I'm staying here with my Daddy." Beth then left the bedroom in tears. Walker seeing this entered the bedroom and asked " Alex what's wrong with Beth?"  
" Damn you Walker isn't it enough that you took something very precious from me that night? Did you have to take my daughter away from me too?" Alex snapped at Walker who said " Alex what are you talking about? I have no intention of taking Beth from you and you know that."  
" Then explain to me why Beth thinks that she's going to be living here even after I get better. She said that she was going to be staying here with her Daddy after I told her that we would be getting a place of our own. What did you tell my daughter Walker?" A very angry Alex questioned Walker who answered her " I told Beth that the two of you would be living here until you got better, that's all. Alex right now Beth is used to living here but once you get better and get your own place she'll come around."  
" I hope that you're right Walker because I'm not leaving my daughter here with you after I'm better. She comes with me no matter what." Alex vowed.

Chapter Two

A few weeks later Alex laid in her bed at Walker's ranch trying not to give into the need to take a pain pill. After awhile Alex decided that she should get up and walk around a little bit. That it might ease her back pain [she hoped] because she did not want to get addicted to pain pills. After walking around the downstairs area for awhile Alex gingerly made her way into the living room where she sat on the couch trying to ease the stiffness in her back. Realizing that she had better do something to take her mind off of the pain Alex reached for the remote for the T.V. but she reached too far and strained her back causing her to moan in pain. Walker who had heard Alex moving about downstairs came into the living room then and asked her " Alex are you okay? Do you need me to get you anything?"  
" No. I'm fine. I didn't mean to wake you up. Why don't you go back to bed?" Alex said to Walker who sat down on the couch besides her. After a few minutes when Walker didn't say anything else Alex got up from the couch and headed to her bedroom but was stopped by Walker saying to her " Alex why don't you take a pain pill if the pain in your back is keeping you awake?"  
" Because I don't want to take one every time I feel a little twinge. Besides I'm sure that my back will be better in the morning." Alex replied.  
" Alex quit being stubborn and take the pill will you?" Walker urged her but Alex refused saying " I just told you that I'm not going to take a pain pill every time something hurts me. Now good night Walker."  
" Alex if you don't want to take a pain pill how about having someone massage your back for you? It helps with the pain sometimes." Walker told Alex who responded " I don't see anyone who's going to give me a massage this time of night. Do you?"  
" I'll do it but only if you promise not to tell anyone." Walker offered.  
" You know how to give a back massage cowboy? Did you learn that in karate class?" Alex questioned Walker in a tone of pure disbelief. " Alex why don't you go lay down on your bed while I get some massgae oil? I promise you that if at any time you want me to stop I will. You have my word." Walker told her.  
Torn between wanting to ease the pain but not trusting Walker to behave himself Alex answered " I don't want to take another pain pill but my back is really starting to hurt me. Will you really stop this time if I tell you to stop?" Walker realizing that Alex was referring to the night Beth was conceived said " If you want we can wake Beth up to make sure that I keep my word."  
" No. Don't wake her up. I'll go lay on my bed while you get the massage oil but I only want you to massage my back and nothing else. Got that Mister Walker?" Alex sternly informed Walker who replied " Yes I got that Miss Cahill."  
Walker entered Alex's bedroom to find Alex laying face down on her bed with her t- shirt rolled up to just below her breasts and her sweatpants rolled down to just above her hips. Walker poured some massage oil on Alex's back causing her to jump as she said " That's cold." Walker rubbed his hands together and told her " It will warm up quickly, now lay still until I'm done." Walker massaged Alex's back for awhile then asked her " Do you feel better? Can you sleep now?"  
" Yes I can. Thank you. Walker can I call you something other than Walker? I mean I'm living at your ranch and we have a daughter in common. It just seems a little strange to call you by your last name all of the time." Alex said to Walker who asked her " What did you have in mind?"  
" How about Cord the Cowboy?" Alex answered in a teasing manner but Walker became very angry and told her " Never ever call me Cord again." Stunned by how mad Walker had just become Alex nodded okay and Walker turned to leave the room. Alex said to his retreating back " I'll just stick with Walker then if that's okay with you?" Without answering Walker kept on walking away from her.  
The next morning as Alex was putting breakfast out Walker asked her " How's your back this morning? And why did you make breakfast? I told you that I would do it." Alex replied " I know that you did but Beth asked me to make her some pancakes so I made enough for all of us. As for my back, it's much better but I think that I'll see if I can get someone to come out here to give me a back massage every so often. That way my muscles won't tighten up so much."  
" I think that's for the best." Walker said as Beth came into the dining room to eat. Beth sat down at the table and questioned her father " Daddy did you tell Mommy that I was going to learn to ride Belle today?" When Alex looked like she wanted to protest Walker told his daughter " Young lady I told you that you would learn how to ride Belle only after your mother and I talked about it and we haven't yet talked about it yet."  
Beth turned to Alex and said " Why won't you let me ride Belle?" Alex replied " I did not refuse to let you ride Belle sweetheart but like your father just told you, he and I will talk about it before it happens. Now how about you eat your breakfast?" Beth pouted " But Daddy wants me to learn how to ride Belle and I'm going to learn how to ride her today." Walker sternly told his daughter " Rowan Elizabeth Cahill you will not learn how to ride Belle today. Now like your mother just told you eat your breakfast." Beth ate her breakfast but all through it she glared at her mother who glared at Walker. After breakfast was over with and Beth was playing in her room Alex told Walker " Now Beth thinks that I'll never let her learn how to ride Bell. Why did you get her a horse anyway?"  
" I got Beth a horse so that we could go on rides together." Walker answered Alex who questioned him " Are these rides just going to be the two of you? Am I going to be allowed to ride with my daughter also?"  
" Alex like I have the guts to tell you that you're not allowed to ride along with us. You'd nail my hide to the wall if I tried that one." Walker teased Alex who teased him right back " Of course I would Cowboy." Then remembering Walker's reaction to her having called him Cord the Cowboy Alex added " I'm sorry about calling you cowboy, it just slipped out."  
" Alex it's all right. You can call me cowboy if you don't want to call me Walker but please don't call me Cord ever again. No one calls me that." Walker told Alex who then asked him " Can I call you mule-headed?"  
" Just as long as I can call you stubborn." Was Walker's reply. That evening Walker, Alex and Beth were sitting in the living room when Alex said " Now let's talk about you learning how to ride Belle Beth. I'll agree to it just so long as your father assures me that he'll be there to keep an eye on you. I also do not want you riding by yourself until your father and I both agree that you're old enough to ride without adult supervision."  
Beth got up and hugged her mother " Thank you Mommy. I love you." Alex told her daughter " Beth riding Belle is a privilege and your father and I will take that privilege away from you if we feel that we have a good reason to do so."  
Beth looked at Walker who said " Beth both your mother and I are in agreement about this. Now go get ready for bed." Beth kissed her mother goodnight and headed up the stairs. Alex turned to Walker and asked him " Will you really go along with me if I restrict Beth's riding?" Walker replied " Yes I will. Alex both you and I want Beth to be raised to respect things. If there comes a time that we need to take her riding privileges away from our daughter we will do it together."  
" Okay, just checking. I think that I'll go tuck our daughter in." Alex said then she too headed upstairs to tuck her daughter in.

Chapter Three

Alex hired a physical therapist to come out to the ranch every two weeks to give her a back massage. In the meantime Walker was teaching Beth how to ride her horse Belle. After Beth had her first lesson which she had watched Alex informed Walker that she could no longer watch as Beth learned how to ride her horse. When Walker asked Alex why she wouldn't watch as her daughter learned to ride a horse Alex told him that she had been a nervous wreck during the first lesson and was afraid that Beth would pick up her nervousness so Walker began to schedule the riding lessons for when Alex was getting her back massages done. One evening Walker and Beth were headed to the barn to get ready for another horse riding lesson when Walker asked " Alex do you want me to wait here until your therapist gets here? You seem on edge about something. Is everything okay?"  
" I'm fine, you and Beth go ahead with her lesson. I'm sure that my therapist will be along any minute now." Alex told Walker then kissed her daughter on the cheek as she said " Now you listen to your father and be careful honey." Beth kissed her mother back and grabbed her father's hand and started tugging on it so Walker left the house with his daughter. Halfway through the riding lesson Walker began to get a feeling that something was wrong at the house so he called over Cal his foreman and said to him " Cal I forgot something in the house. Can you keep an eye on Beth for me?"  
Cal replied that he would and Walker hurried into the house where he found Alex fighting off a man while a woman was sitting on the couch watching with a smirk on her face. Walker grabbed the man away from Alex and threw him across the room. Alex went to the woman and told her " Get out of my house now."  
The woman stood up as she said " Oh come off of the virginal act Alex. You were the one who hit on Trebor just as soon as we got here." Alex heatedly denied the accusation " Susan you know damn well that I told your husband that I wasn't interested in what the two of you had in mind. Now for the last time take your low life husband and leave my house." Susan scoffed " You're not interested in what we had in mind? Please, get real. You are the one getting a 'back massage' every two weeks, not me. Shawn asked Trebor to fill in for him and I tagged along to see if it was the same Alex Cahill that I knew all through college and law school. It turns out that it was and I must say that you've certainly lost your chasity, as it were. There's also the fact that Jethro told us all about how you were all over him and some cowboy that night I set you up on a date with him so I wonder just how much you enjoyed that night in spite of the fact you told me that you never wanted to talk about it. Besides you were the one who suggested a threesome, not Trebor nor me for that matter."  
Walker entered the conversation " Alex did no such thing. As for Jethro he drugged Alex that night. She was not all over him or anyone else for that matter. She did not enjoy being drugged by a jerk. Alex has asked you to leave, now do so." Trebor sneered " What's it to you what we do with Alex? She's so hot to trot, you can tell that by her looks. I'll bet that..." That was as far as Trebor got because Walker grabbed him by the throat stating " Another word about Alex and you'll regret it, understand?"  
Trebor nodded okay and Walker released him. Susan however didn't give up as she sat back down on the couch and said " You can't make me shut up about Alex. I'll say whatever I want to about her and her behavior. You can't hit a woman, so there." Alex walked over to Susan and told her " You're right. Walker would never hit a woman but I have no problem with hitting you. So you can either leave my house now on your own two feet or I will drag you out by your hair."  
Susan stood up and said " Try it honey." Alex not only tried it but she quickly succeeded and Susan was laying in the front yard before she knew what hit her. Walker looked at Trebor who hurriedly took the hint. Walker saw the pair to their car and told them " Don't ever come back here again. Either one of you." Trebor nodded okay while Susan said nothing.  
After making sure that they drove away Walker went back onto the porch where Alex was and before he could ask Alex anything she told him " That was my former friend Susan Barnes, he's her husband Trebor and the cousin of Dwayne the man who drugged me that night." Walker started to take Alex into his arms to comfort her but thought better of it. After a minute of silence Alex questioned him " Walker did I throw myself at you that night? What if what they're saying about that night is true? I've blamed you all this time for what happened to me and it might not have been all your fault."  
" I don't remember much of what happened that night because I was hammered. However Alex I know that you are not the type to throw yourself at anyone. They are lying about you." Walker answered Alex who moved further away from him and said " So that night could have been my fault just as much as it was your's."  
" Alex you were not at fault for anything that night. You were under the influence of drugs. You are not to blame for what you did or didn't do. The fault from that night lies with me and me alone." Walker stated.  
" But you said that you were hammered that night and you might not have known what you were doing." Alex objected but Walker rejected Alex's thinking by saying " It does not matter how drunk I was that night. What matters is that I took advantage of your condition. It was wrong then and it's still wrong now."  
Alex nodded okay then changed the subject " Aren't you supposed to be giving Beth her riding lessons?" Walker answered " Yes I am, want to come watch? That is if you didn't hurt your back, did you?" Alex agreed " No I didn't hurt my back and I'd better get over my fear of Beth riding a horse, so yes I'll watch." They went to the corral where Walker resumed Beth's horse riding lessons. As they were returning to the house Alex noticed that a package had been delivered so she picked it up and saw that it was addressed to her. Opening it she found out that it was her diary. Seeing the look of puzzlement on her face Walker told her " That was introduced as evidence during the custody hearing."  
" Who introduced it? My father?" Alex angrily asked Walker who replied " It doesn't really matter now, does it?"  
" It doesn't matter that complete strangers were able to read my most intimate thoughts? I'm going to kill my father." A still upset Alex muttered. Walker told her " No you're not because I'm not going to raise Beth by myself. Her stubborn mother is going to help me raise her, got that?"  
" You're the stubborn one but I'm still going to have a nice long talk with my father about certain things, starting with that custody case." Alex answered Walker then questioned him " Did your lawyer read this? What about you?"  
" Alex I didn't have a lawyer and no I didn't read it." Walker assured Alex who asked him " Why on earth didn't you have a lawyer?"  
" I didn't have time to hire one, besides I don't like them." Walker answered Alex who teased " All of them? You don't even like me?" Walker teased back " All of them, but I have to admit that I like you, sometimes."

Chapter Four

Alex arranged for Walker to get Beth from school and meet her in C.D.'s after work one afternoon because she had a late doctor's appointment. As Alex was waiting for Walker to show up C.D. came to the booth and asked her " Alex how's your back? Are you going to be returning to work anytime soon?" Alex replied " My back is doing a lot better and Dr. Williams said that I can return to work on a part-time basis next month, just so long as I pass the physical. Why?"  
" That newest A.D.A., Blawnox that Clark hired to temporarily replace you has been losing a lot of the cases that the Texas Rangers have brought to the D.A.'s office, that's all. It's good to know that you're going to get back to work making sure that the people that Cordell and Jimmie arrest end up behind bars like they should." C.D. said to Alex who then asked him " C.D. why do you call Walker Cordell? I mean I've never heard anyone else call him anything other than Walker, or Washoo. So why don't you call him Walker or Cord?"  
C.D. replied " I call Cordell by his given name because he was assigned to be my partner when he first joined the Rangers and I wasn't about to call him Walker like he insisted on, he was the junior partner. As for other people calling him Walker, that's what he prefers to be called. A word of advice Alex don't ever call him Cord."  
Alex then said " Oh believe me, I know not to call him Cord. I called Walker Cord the cowboy and he got furious. I'd like to know why that made him so mad. I was just teasing him."  
" Alex it's not my place to tell you why Cordell got upset when you called him Cord, but you should know honey that I think that he wasn't really mad at you. That he was more upset by being called Cord. Cordell will not abide being called that name by anyone, ever." C.D. told Alex who changed the subject by asking " How about you coming out to a picnic at the ranch on Saturday? My father is getting out of rehab and I thought that he would like a nice relaxing day at the ranch."  
" Your father is allowed at Walker's ranch after he tried to take Beth from Walker? I'll bet that was your idea. You do realize Alex that if you hadn't woken up from your coma Gordan would have taken Beth away from Dallas and all of us, don't you?" C.D. questioned Alex.  
" My father and I will be having a nice long talk about the custody case and the fact that I wanted Walker to take care of Beth, not him. C.D. you have to understand my father thought that he was doing the right thing. He may have gone a little overboard but his heart was really in the right place. He does care about Beth and I." Alex told C.D. who replied changing the subject himself " What time is the picnic on Saturday?" Trivette entered the bar then and asked " Picnic, what picnic? Am I invited?"  
" Of course you are Jimmie, and you can even bring a date if you want to." Alex replied as Trivette sat down in the booth. Beth came in the door followed by Walker. After they were seated Trivette asked " Hey Walker do you want me to bring anything to the picnic at your ranch on Saturday?" Walker looked at Alex who realized that she should have asked Walker if it was okay before she invited everyone out to his ranch. Alex quickly explained to him " I know that I should have asked you first but I planned a picnic at the ranch for Saturday. My father is getting out of rehab and I thought that he might enjoy a picnic. If you don't want to have guests at the ranch just tell me and I'll cancel the picnic."  
" You can have your picnic Alex but next time ask me first." Walker answered Alex who pledged " I will, I swear. Now for the good news, Dr. Williams said that I could return to work on a part-time basis next month. It shouldn't take me too long to save enough money up to get my own place again."  
" That's great Alex that you're returning to work because I have to tell you that I was getting a little frustrated with that newest A.D.A. Blawnox blowing our cases and those scum bags walking because of his incompetence." Trivette told her. Alex looked at Walker who said " Trivette's right about Blawnox. As for you getting a new place, you can stay at the ranch for as long as you need to Alex. No need to rush things and reinjure your back. I don't mind having Beth and you there, really."  
" We can have this talk some other time cowboy." Alex told Walker then asked Beth about school to change the subject. Later on that night after Beth was asleep Alex brought up the subject of the picnic again " Walker I really am sorry that I didn't ask you first about the picnic but I feel so at home here that I didn't think to ask permission to host a picnic."  
" Alex I already told you that it was okay. Do you need me to do anything to get the place ready for the picnic?" Walker said to Alex who pulled a list out of her purse and handed it to him saying " Well since you asked I do have a few things that I need help with." Walker took the list knowing that he had just been verbally bested by Alex yet again. Walker then informed her " You won this time lady but I will win the next time."  
" Walker I will always win the verbal battles so you might as well admit that right now and save yourself the aggravation of trying to best me verbally." Alex teasingly replied. " Maybe so lady but I won't stop trying."  
" I'm looking forward to winning over and over again, good night Walker." Alex replied then headed to her bedroom leaving Walker standing there understanding that Alex had won yet again. Looking at her retreating form Walker had a flashback of Alex calling him Cord but it was gone so quick he couldn't figure out if it was from the night of the massage or that other night so long ago. Walker headed up to his bedroom where he went to sleep. In the middle of the night he heard Alex moving around downstairs so he went downstairs to see if she was okay. When Alex saw Walker standing in the living room watching her she told him " I didn't mean to call you Cord that night."  
" Which night was this Alex?" Walker asked Alex who answered him " Both nights but you have to understand the first time I called you that I didn't know who you were or what I was doing for that matter. I barely remember asking you your name and you telling me that it was Cordell Walker so then I called you Cord. After that you mumbled something about how much you had missed...But I can't remember what name you said."  
" It's in the past. Let's just forget about it, okay?" Walker suggested to Alex who nodded okay and went back to her bedroom. Walker now knew that it had been Alex who called him Cord the night Beth had been conceived. That his beer fogged brain had thought it was Ellen leading him to think that he was in Ellen's arms again.

Chapter Five

It was now Saturday morning Walker and Beth were getting ready to go outside to set up things for the picnic when Walker asked " By the way Alex who are you planning on doing the grilling?" Alex answered " I was planning on doing the grilling myself. It shouldn't put too much of a strain on my back."  
Walker told her " You will not be standing on your feet half the day grilling, I'll do it. I don't want you setting your recovery back. Beth needs her mother to be healthy." As Alex smiled Walker realized that she had been counting on him volunteering to do the grilling. Walker semi-growled " One of these days lady, I'll win." Alex laughingly said " Not anytime soon cowboy. Now you two go ahead outside and get things ready while I make the potato salad. I'm also going to make some macaroni salad and I already have the baked beans in the oven, they'll be done by the time C.D. and Trivette gets here."  
Walker and Beth went outside where they set up the picnic tables and Walker got the grill ready for grilling. When that was done Walker brought out some lawn chairs for their guests to sit on. A short time later Gordan arrived in a cab. After paying the taxi driver Gordan went to where Beth and Walker were seated and said to Beth " Hi honey, do you remember me? I'm your grandfather Gordan Cahill, I'm your mother's father."  
" Grandpa Gordan is it true that you asked a judge to take me away from my Daddy when Mommy was in the hospital?" Beth questioned her grandfather who instead of answering Beth's questions sat down on a lawn chair and glared at Walker who then asked his daughter " Beth where did you hear that Grandpa Gordan was trying to take you away from me?"  
Beth replied " One time Grandpa C.D. was watching me and he said to someone on the phone that grandpa Gordan was trying to take me away from my Daddy. Did you try to take me away from my Daddy Grandpa Gordan?" Gordan replied " Yes I did and I was wrong to do that. I know now that your Daddy loves you very much and that your mother, my daughter Alex wants you to be with your father as much as possible. Speaking of my daughter, where is she?"  
" In the kitchen doing some last minute cooking. You can go ahead into the house if you want to Gordan. Beth and I are going to let the horses out to run in the pasture." Walker told Gordan who hesitated to go into the house and asked " Just how much does Alex know about the custody case? She doesn't know that I read her diary, does she?"  
" Alex received her diary by parcel post the other evening so she knows that you had it introduced as evidence. A word of warning Gordan Alex plans to have a talk with you about the custody case." Walker told Gordan who questioned him only half in jest " I don't suppose that I can talk you into going into the house with me? You know to protect me from my own daughter?" Walker shook his head no and headed to the barn with Beth.  
After a few minutes Gordan went into the house. Finding Alex in the kitchen he asked her " Is there anything that I can do to help you get ready for the picnic?" Alex responded " I don't need help getting things ready for the picnic. What I need help with is understanding why you introduced my diary at that custody hearing. Why did you do that Dad? And did you read the whole thing? Furthermore why did you even file suit for custody of Beth after I named Walker to take care of her?"  
" Alex I know now that I was wrong to introduce your diary during the custody hearing but at the time it seemed like the right thing to do. Alex when I read the part you wrote after you had discovered that Walker had taken advantage of you when you had been drugged I wanted to kill him with my bare hands. After reading that I was convinced that the living will Walker said that you had naming him to take care of Beth was forged because there was no way my daughter would let a man who had done something like that near her daughter, my grandaughter. I stopped reading your diary after the entry where you wrote that you were never going to allow Walker anywhere near Beth again." Gordan explained to Alex.  
" I can see you thinking that Walker should be kept away from Beth if those entries were all you had to go on but things changed. After I wrote those things Walker's Uncle Ray was diagnosed with cancer. Beth was devastated that her Uncle Ray was going to cross the river so I decided that she would need her father to help her cope with her uncle's death. After Uncle Ray revealed that he was going to be crossing the river soon I came to understand that in spite of what happened that night so long ago that Walker loved Beth dearly and that my daughter already cared very deeply for the man who was actually her father. We had planned to tell Beth that Walker was really her father the weekend that I was stabbed, it was also the same weekend that Uncle Ray died. Dad I know that you were trying then to be a good grandfather and my wish is that you'll still want to be Beth's grandfather because Walker will remain a part of Beth's life. Walker is willing to forget about the custody case, are you?" Alex said.  
Gordan paused a minute to collect his thoughts then stated " I'm willing to forget about the custody case but I'm not willing to see my daughter put in harm's way. What I'm saying Alex is, are you that sure that Walker will never take advantage of you like that again? You and Beth are out here all alone with him. Because if you're not sure that you can really trust Walker just tell me and I'll pay for a place for you and Beth to move into until you get back on your feet."  
" I am very positive that Walker will never ever take advantage of me. He would rather die first. Yes I really trust him with Beth's safety and my safety when it comes down to it. I thank you for offering to pay for a place for Beth and I but I think that we'll stay here until I get back to work and save up enough money for our own place. Beth really loves it here and she has a horse named Belle that Walker bought for her. He taught Beth how to take care of the horse before he allowed Beth to learn how to ride it. Not to change the subject but how about you mixing up the potato salad while I mix up the macaroni salad?" Alex ended the conversation as she handed her father an spoon to mix up the potato salad.  
Trivette arrived with his girlfriend and did the introductions " Nicole Shantal, this is Alex Cahill, her father Gordan Cahill, her daughter Rowan Cahill, also known as Beth. This is Beth's father Cordell Walker and my partner. Also meet C.D. Parker, he's a former Texas Ranger." Nicole said " Pleased to meet you all but Jimmie didn't you introduce Beth wrong? Isn't her last name Walker?"  
Trivette replied " Beth's full name is Rowan Elizabeth Cahill. Now how's that grilling coming Walker?" The group settled down to their picnic. After they had eaten Gordan pulled Walker aside and said to him " Alex said that you were willing to put the custody case behind you and I'd like to do the same. Alex explained to me her reasons for having Beth live with you when she was in the hospital. My daughter assures me that in spite of what happened that night all thoses years ago that she trusts you with her daughter Beth and trusts you not to harm her again. As Alex's father I have to ask you this question, is my daughter's trust in you misplaced? Please answer me honestly."  
" I will never hurt Alex or allow anyone to hurt her or Beth. You have my word on that." Walker vowed to Gordan who then said " Okay but you should also know that I offered to pay for a place for Alex and Beth to live in until Alex returned to work but Alex declined my offer. Walker if you don't want them living here any longer just say so now and I'll pay for a house for them."  
" Alex and Beth can stay here for as long as Alex wishes them to. Once Alex returns to work if she feels that she and Beth should get their own place I'll start paying child support to make it easier on them. But if Alex wants to stay on here an extended period of time, that's okay too." Walker replied.  
Gordan questioned him " Won't that cut into your time with the ladies?" Walker answered " I haven't dated for years." Gordan not quite believing him blurted out " What are you gay?"  
" No. The woman that I planned on marrying was gunned down in front of me right after she accepted my marriage proposal. I will never put a woman that I care about or any woman for that matter in the line of fire again by becoming involved with her. I do not date." Walker answered then walked away.

Chapter Six

Alex had her doctor's appointment and passed the physical which allowed her to return to work. Her very first case was a tricking one that A.D.A. Blawnox who had previously been assigned the case was lobbying D.A. Clark to accept a plea deal that was very favorable to the defendant, Troy Eaversly. After reading the particulars of the case Alex said to D.A. Clark " We should be able to get a full conviction in this case if we approach it the right way." Blawnox objected " Look Miss Cahill I'm here to tell you that the best the D.A.'s office can do is to take the plea deal. It's only going to be on the table for another day and after that it's off."  
D.A. Clark said " Cahill I'll let you try the Eaversly case with Phil Holland as your assistant but if you don't get a conviction on all the charges I suggest that you look for employment elsewhere. Do we understand each other?" Alex held onto her temper as she replied " Perfectly D.A. Clark. I'll go meet with A.D.A. Holland and we'll get started on it right away." Alex left Clark's office and located Phil Holland and got started on the case. Phil was new to the D.A.'s office but Alex was impressed by his willingness to learn from her and with his abilty to remember key details that had been overlooked by A.D.A. Blawnox. After brainstorming for awhile Alex suggested " How about we go to C.D.'s for lunch?" Phil answered " I'd like that. I've heard a lot about the place but haven't had the chance to stop by there yet."  
So they went to C.D.'s where they got a booth. As they were eating Trivette and Walker entered C.D.'s. Trivette said to Walker " Hey Walker it looks like Alex is in your booth eating with another man." Walker looked over to the booth then said " Alex is free to eat with whoever she wants to."  
" Aren't you worried that Alex will fall for him enough that she marries him and then Beth will have a new Daddy?" Trivette questioned his partner who snapped " Beth will never have a new Daddy, not as long as I'm breathing." Alex happened to look up then and spotted Walker and Trivette there so she said to them " Hey guys, how about coming over to join us?" Trivette headed to the booth followed by Walker. Alex told them " This is A.D.A. Phil Holland, he's going to be assisting me with the Eaversly case. Phil, this is Texas Ranger Cordell Walker and his partner James Trivette."  
" Nice to meet the two of you. I understand that it was your work that led to the arrest of Eaversly?" Holland answered them. Trivette said " Yes it was. What are the chances that he'll be convicted this time?"  
" Let's just put it this way. Blawnox wanted Clark to take the plea deal that all but let Eaversly walk with a minor fine and no probation at all but I got Clark to allow me to take this case to trial. I promise you two that I will do my best to get a conviction in this case. It might be a little tricky to do but I know that I can and will do it." Alex replied.  
" If you need me to pick up Beth from school or do anything else to help you out just let me know ahead of time." Walker told Alex causing Holland to ask him " Who's Beth?"  
" Walker's and mine daughter." Alex replied. " I didn't realize that you were married. I mean you're not wearing a wedding ring." Holland said as he looked at Alex's left hand. Seeing Phil looking at Alex's left hand Trivette smiled while Alex said " No I'm not married Phil. However my marital status is something that has no bearing on our working relationship, not now, not ever. I work at the D.A.'s office to convict criminals not to find a man. Are we clear on that?"  
" Very clear Alex. You're right; it is none of my business. Now since Rangers Walker and Trivette are here how about we make arrangements to go over their testimony? Is this evening good?" Holland said. Walker answered " How about tomorrow morning at ten in Alex's office? I promised Beth that the three of us would go for a ride."  
" You did? When was this and who's the third person?" Alex questioned Walker with a hint of jealousy in her voice. Walker replied " This morning when we were eating breakfast. Remember I suggested a ride after work?"  
" You're right I forgot. I should be done today in time to get Beth. If not I'll make arrangements for her to go to the child care at the D.A.'s office. Do you have any idea when you'll be home?" Alex asked Walker. " Around seven. If anything comes up after that I'm sure that Trivette will be able to handle it. Won't you Trivette?"  
" Of course I can Walker." Trivette answered his partner. Alex then said " Oh look at the time. I'll hit the ladies room then we'll leave Phil." Alex got up to leave the booth and Walker decided that he needed to use the men's room. After they had both left the booth Phil asked Trivette " Are they living together?"  
" Right now Alex is staying at Walker's ranch recovering from being stabbed by former A.D.A. Brighton. If those two have any brains in their heads it will become a permanent arrangement and not just for Beth's sake. Holland if you are interested in Alex I think that you should forget about it because while Walker and Alex may not know it or even admit it they are very interested in each other. So do yourself a favor and settle for a working relationship because that's all Alex will ever allow it to be." Trivette offered some advice for Phil who responded " I got that impression from Alex and while I think that she is beautiful I also know that she is the best A.D.A. that I can learn from. So there's no way that I would mess that up. Besides there's this really cute metro cop that I ran into the other day. Your partner doesn't have to worry about me hitting on the mother of his daughter."  
Alex and Walker literally ran into each other as they were leaving the restrooms. Walker grabbed a hold of Alex's arms to keep her from falling and they stood there staring at each other for awhile. Holland who saw that said " Man they are really interested in each other, aren't they? But why won't they do anything about it? I mean they have a child together, so why not get married?"  
" That's a very long story and it's not my place to tell you about it but enough about them, how do you like Dallas?" Trivette changed the subject.  
After their ride Walker insisted that Alex take Beth into the house while he took care of all three horses but Alex refused stating that her and Beth would take care of their own horses. Alex then spent the rest of the evening trying to hide the fact that her back was hurting but she didn't fool Walker who waited until after Beth was asleep to question Alex " Why didn't you let me take care of the horses? Now you're trying to hide the fact that you've hurt your back, aren't you?"  
" Because you and I both agree that Beth has to take care of her horse and as her mother I can't let you take care of my horse while insisting that she take care of hers. And yes my back is hurting but it's mostly from sitting at a desk half the day." Alex replied as she started rubbing her lower back. Walker then offered " How about I give you a back massage?" Alex agreed and Walker gave her the back massage but all during it Alex kept having images of Walker turning her over and kissing her until she couldn't think straight. After he was done Walker questioned " Is your back okay now? Do you need me to do anything else for you?"  
" Can you please leave my room now?" Alex requested in a shaky voice puzzling Walker who asked her " Alex what's the matter? Did I hurt you in some way?" Moving over to the door Alex held it open as she said " No you did everything right and then some. Walker please you have to leave the room right now before I do something that the both of us will regret."  
" What can you possibly do that the both of us will regret Alex?" Walker questioned Alex who whispered " Kiss you. I want to kiss you so badly right now. We can't go down that path Walker. It would only cause more problems in the long run." Walker nodded and left Alex's room understanding that while Alex wanted him just like he wanted her she didn't want to further complicate things and neither did he. The next morning Walker said as they were making breakfast " Alex I have a cabin a few minutes from here. If you want me to I'll move into it and you and Beth can stay here."  
" I will not drive you from your home Walker but it might be a good idea if I were to move in there with Beth. That way we'll still be here at the ranch and Beth can still ride Belle when we allow her to. Beth can still have her room here and she can also spend some weekends here when you're not working. It's the best thing to do for all of us. We can make formal arrangements or just play it by ear, it's your choice." Alex replied.  
" Let's fix the cabin up first then go from there." Walker answered Alex.

Chapter Seven

Walker spent the next several weekends with Trivette fixing up the cabin for Alex to move into with Beth. One day when they were nearly done Trivette asked him " Walker why don't Alex and Beth just keep on living in your house? I mean why bother having them move into here if you want them to go elsewhere?" Putting the paint brush down Walker answered " I offered to move in here myself so that Alex and Beth could keep living in the house but Alex said that her and Beth were going to be living here instead."  
" That's another thing Walker. I know that you and Alex got off to a rough start but anybody can see that the two of you have feelings for each other. So why don't the two of you stop being so stubborn and give into those feelings?" Trivette questioned his partner who said " Alex doesn't want to further complicate matters and neither do I. Now how about you pick up a paint brush so that we can get finished painting sometime this year?"  
Alex came home from a saturday court session to find C.D. watching Beth so she asked him " Where's Walker at?" C.D. replied " Cordell and Jimmie are painting that cabin that you and Beth are going to be moving into. Alex why don't you and Beth just stay here? I know that you have feelings for Cordell and while he won't admit it he shares those feelings. "  
" That's the problem C.D. I do have feelings for Walker but I'm not sure if they're because I've been staying here or because I love him. Plus there's the fact that a part of me still holds that night against him. I need to get my own place so that I can really know what's in my heart. As for Walker I have a feeling that there's something in his past that's keeping him from moving forward and until he can do that there's no point in me having feelings for him because he won't return them." Alex honestly answered.  
" There is something in Cordell's past but it's not my place to tell you about it. It's up to him. Alex all I know is that Uncle Ray was convinced that you and Walker were meant to be and I think that he was right. So maybe it's for the best that you and Beth move into that cabin. Hopefully Cordell will realize what he's been missing and get on with his life." C.D. told Alex who nodded okay. C.D. then changed the subject to the Eaversly case and Alex told him that it was going okay but she didn't expect it to go the jury for several more days, if not longer.  
Several days later Alex and Beth were moving into the cabin when Beth began crying " I want to stay here with my Daddy." Walker took his daughter aside and told her " Listen honey I need you to keep an eye on your mother and make sure that she's okay when I'm working late. Will you do that for me?"  
" But Daddy why can't Mommy and I keep staying at your house? I can watch her there too." Beth protested some more. Walker answered " Beth you know that you'll still be able to ride Belle whenever your mother and I allow you to. You also know that Daddy works late a lot of times and you will be at that cabin with your mother then. She needs you to be with her, okay?"  
Beth then asked him " Can I spend the weekends here?" Walker replied " Yes you can, when I'm not working. Now how about we go help Mommy?" Walker said to her. After they had been moved into the cabin Trivette left for his date and Walker was going to leave but Alex asked him to stay for dinner which Walker did. Several hours later Beth had gone to sleep and Walker was leaving the cabin when Alex questioned him " Walker are you ever going to tell me who you thought that I was that night? Don't you think that I have a right to know who you confused me with resulting in Beth?"  
Walker went outside and Alex followed him saying " I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset you. Let's just forget about it okay?" Walker turned to face Alex and told her " I thought that I was with Ellen that night. Several months before I met you she was gunned down in front of me right after she accepted my proposal of marriage. After that I didn't care if I lived or died. That night as you know I was drunk and you called me Cord. Ellen was the only person who ever called me Cord."  
Alex responded " I'm so sorry Walker. If you ever need to talk about Ellen I promise you that I will listen to you. I want to be there for you in anyway that I can and I now truly understand that you were no more to blame for that night than I was. We have a beautiful daughter because of it and that's all we should think about when we remember that night." Walker then said " Alex I loved her so much. We were going to get married and raise a family together."  
Alex moved close to Walker and told him " If it's okay with you I'd like to stay here with Beth until she goes off to college. You don't need to lose anyone else in your life." Walker nodded okay and headed to his house. Friday evening Alex and Beth met Walker at C.D.'s for dinner, in the middle of dinner Alex was summoned back to court because the verdict was in. Walker told Alex he would just take Beth to his house since she was going to be spending the weekend there so Alex got up to leave when Walker said " If it's not too much trouble would you stop by the house and let me know how the verdict went?"  
Alex went into Walker's house where she found Walker and Beth eating popcorn so she asked them " Is there any left for me?" Beth answered " Here Mommy you can have some of mine." After they had finished the popcorn Walker said " Okay young lady I think that it's your bedtime." Beth got up and headed upstairs. Alex followed her saying " I'll tuck you in honey."  
Alex returned back downstairs after Beth was asleep and said to Walker " Eaversly was convicted on all counts. He won't be getting all any time soon either. Judge Sanders sent him straight to Huntsville over the defense attorney's wanting him to be out on bail pending appeal. So that makes one less criminal on the streets for us to worry about." Walker hugged Alex close then without thinking about it kissed her. When the kiss deepened Alex broke it off stating " You're not ready to move forward with your life and you know it Walker. When you are you know where to find me." Alex then left Walker's house. Walker stood in his living room as he realized that in spite of everything Alex wanted a relationship with him and that he wanted a relationship with her.


End file.
